So, I normally do two of these stuff-I’ve-recently-watched-on-TV recaps each year. But you know how 2020 was all higgledy-piggledy in terms of the passage of time and… anyway, here’s 366 days’ worth of shows I checked out.
LOVED
Country Music (PBS) I’m no expert about country music, but I do know a fair amount about it and I own lots of recordings. That being said, I still learned so much from each episode of this Ken Burns documentary series — deep histories and connections told by scholars and survivors — that for me, it was essential, delightful viewing. And I jotted down several musicians on the ‘To Buy” list on my phone.
LIKED A LOT
Moonbase 8 (Showtime) Fred Armisen, John C. Reilly, and Tim Heidecker each deliver subtly hilarious performances in this series about veteran NASA staffers manning a long-term moon simulation out in the desert. The genius here is that the comedy never gets too broad, and drips of actual emotions seep in.
How To with John Wilson (HBO) A real pleasant pandemic surprise. John Wilson is a protégé of deadpan master Nathan Fielder. Each episode is ostensibly a “how to” lesson on a different topic, but is really a showcase for Wilson’s unerring eye for the absurd via reams of his on-the-street video footage, paired with his halting, nervous-guy narration.
The Plot Against America (HBO) I’ll admit it was weird watching a miniseries that I’d auditioned for. But David Simon did such an excellent job adapting the Philip Roth novel, I have to tip my 1940s fedora. Winona Ryder, John Turturro, and Zoe Kazan are especially great in this “what if” tale — fascist-leaning Lindbergh defeats Roosevelt for the presidency — with terrifying modern-day parallels.
I Know This Much Is True (HBO) Mark Ruffalo is fantastic — his lead actor Emmy win totally deserved — in a dual role as a mentally unstable individual and the twin brother who struggles to look after him. (Rosie O’Donnell as a social worker should’ve at least been nominated for supporting actress.) Though the miniseries did have a fair share of weak dramatic “coincidences,” the lifelong heart and pain of families is laid bare here and truly resonates.
The Last Dance (ESPN) A terrific documentary miniseries about greatest-of-all-time Michael Jordan and the 1997–98 Chicago Bulls, with biographical flashbacks slowly catching up with the “present day” providing excellent context. For many viewers, it also provided a handy time machine — for me, carrying me from middle school to a decade into my adult life. One gripe: Though the warts-and-all series does puncture the myth of St. Michael, it still maybe could’ve been a bit more critical.
McMillions (HBO) A wild look at the major scam that derailed McDonald’s Monopoly game. Unlike the more traditional documentaries on HBO (which are often directed by Alex Gibney and are generally excellent), this was much more loosey-goosey and, as a result, very refreshing. The filmmakers landed access to all the significant individuals and it’s a fascinating story.
The Johnny Cash Show (getTV) As someone who reads a lot about music, I’d often seen this end-of-the-60s series referenced as groundbreaking, with the country icon welcoming new faces from the counterculture. Finally I’ve had a chance to actually see old episodes and they’re pretty wonderful. It’s a bizarrely excellent mix of guests, such as Roy Orbison, the Monkees, Charley Pride, Neil Diamond, George Jones, Stevie Wonder, Creedence Clearwater Revival, lonesome George Gobel, etc. etc. etc. As a quaint time capsule, it’s also very cool. My only real beef is, there are 56 episodes, yet no rhyme or reason to which ones getTV chooses to air — seems like the same handful over and over. Show them all and show them in order, dagnabbit!!
LIKED
Fargo (FX) This was my least favorite season of Fargo, but there was still a lot to like. I’m a big fan of both Jason Schwartzman and Chris Rock, though neither seemed to summon the gravitas necessary to head warring crime families. Eh, maybe that was the point. (Edge to Schwartzman.) Great performances by Ben Whishaw and Timothy Olyphant, good menacing performance by Salvatore Esposito, nice work by Ol’ Half-a-Face from Boardwalk Empire (didn’t even realize it was him until he mumbled some dialogue), and, um, somebody must’ve owed Andrew Bird a favor. The season looked real good; maybe it was the the lack of a moral center that turned me off. There was a stand-alone episode that, if anything, proved that Noah Hawley is no David Lynch. And ultimately no Coen brothers either.
Avenue 5 (HBO) Created by Veep/Alan Partridge hero Armando Iannucci, I had very high hopes for this series. And I loved the Gilligan’s Island-in-space conceit, aboard a cruise (space)ship. I especially enjoyed Zach Woods’ character and performance, and overall really liked the series, though I thought the season ended pretty poorly. Still, I’ll be back for season two. (What the hell else am I going to do?)
The Outsider (HBO) Another one that I really liked until the end. You gotta stick the landing, kids! I loved the small town murder investigation plot presented early, though knowing it was a Stephen King adaptation, I worried there would be too much supernatural mumbo-jumbo. But the story did hold my attention, and lead Ben Mendelsohn was phenomenal, nearly matched by grown-up Mare Winningham and quirky Cynthia Erivo.
Perry Mason (HBO) For a high school history class “1950s Day” presentation, I portrayed Perry Mason, so to prepare I taped an episode and repeated a line of dialogue over and over: “But you do know Dr. Barnes.” Therefore I was uniquely pumped for this series prequel reboot. John Lithgow was excellent, it was good to see Rhys-Whoever from The Americans again, and I was liking this quite a bit. But, guess what happened? Guess! Yup, it got stupid. Fiddlesticks!
Tiger King (Netflix) Yeah, I was drawn in too, in those scary early Covid days. But let’s face it, the filmmaking wasn’t very good, and when all was said and done I just felt kind of dirty.
Bojack Horseman (Netflix) I know, I know, this was on five years ago, and I even started recording it off Comedy Central in 2018. But sometimes it takes a global pandemic to really sit down and watch something. Anyhoo, I know lots of people really dug this, and it is occasionally brilliant, often very clever, and I could listen to Will Arnett and Paul F. Tompkins talk all day. But often the writing seems too clever (dial it down a little, fellas; were you raised on Family Guy?), the animation is cheap, and the “serious” stuff falls flat. Yet I will keep watching — 3 seasons to go I think — in Quarantine ’21.
KIND OF LIKED, KIND OF DIDN’T
The Undoing (HBO) Talk about a limited series that had me hooked but then totally fell apart in the last episode! They really Undid themselves.
WATCHED ONE EPISODE AND CERTAINLY MEANT TO KEEP WATCHING AND AT SOME POINT MIGHT ACTUALLY DO THAT, BUT WITH EACH PASSING MONTH IT SEEMS LESS LIKELY
Medical Police (Netflix) A follow-up of sorts to Childrens Hospital, one of my all-time fave comedy shows? Wow I was thrilled and excited! So how come I’ve only watched one episode?!? Answer me!!
I’m Not OK With This (Netflix) Was I really not OK with this? The note I jotted down reads, “writing could be stronger but” But what?? #cliffhangernote
THREE AND DONE
Run (HBO) Fleabag-adjacent, and I do like that Domhall Gleason. But the whole thing seemed like wish fulfillment for someone who isn’t me.
TWO AND DONE
Lovecraft Country (HBO) Oh, the African-American experience in 1950s Chicago; could be very interesting. But when Emperor Palpatine showed up, I was done with this shit.
ONE AND DONE
Hunters (Amazon) Al Pacino kicking Nazi ass in the U.S. of A.? Sign me up, daddy! Nah, it was way too comic-book-y, especially after watching The Plot Against America. I hope they paid you well, Al. Hoo-ah!
DELETED AFTER 6 MINUTES
Breeders (FX) I like Martin Freeman a bunch but, I am not the target audience for this particular series.
YES, I STILL WATCH THE SIMPSONS
In case you are keeping score.
GAVE UP ON
Ozark (Netflix) Three years ago, I slotted the series under LIKED, despite its contrived premise. And I really enjoyed the ending of season 2. But after watching the first two episodes of season 3, it just all felt… too contrived. I don’t know, I was tired of the nonstop backstabbing. I guess I missed REO Speedwagon; my loss.
THANK YOU AND GOODBYE
Schitt’s Creek (Pop) Three and a half years ago, I put this show under KIND OF LIKED, KIND OF DIDN’T — not funny enough! But its warmth and gentleness slowly won me over, and I began to look forward to new episodes. They handled the finale and the lead-up really well, with genuine emotion.
Corporate (Comedy Central) Was glad to get three seasons of this dark workplace comedy, which was much more realistic than The Office.
Room 104 (HBO) The Duplass brothers’ anthology series was always hit-and-miss, though in season 4, as they resorted to more high-concept ideas, the balance swung toward ‘miss’ for the first time. (And am I only one who never heard of a “foam party”?) Still, I’ll miss my routine of only watching this show on my laptop, in the dark, late at night, hoping for a solid Twilight Zone twist.
LOOKING FORWARD TO
When I updated my Verizon plan, I guess I now I have Disney+, Hulu, and… is ESPN+ a thing? I’ll poke around on those. Plus am hoping Mr. Mayor is better than its teaser ad.
SHOWS I USED TO WATCH AND IN MANY CASES STILL DO
Links to Edition I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, XIII, XIV, XV, XVI, XVII, and XVIII.
being underrated is overrated
Jack Silbert, curator